After leaving Sequoia around 1 pm yesterday, we stopped briefly in Fresno for groceries, then began the long haul toward Idaho. We called it a night when we got to the Donner Pass eastbound I-80 rest stop around 9:30 pm.
The actual Donner Pass site where the legendary expedition ended tragically is a few miles south of this, and while it would have been interesting to see the site in person, it will have to wait until next time. The rest stop is infamous in and of itself, as my Google sleuthing uncovered a creepy ghost story on Reddit about the restrooms there. Thankfully, we slept peacefully with no ghosts or creepy people disturbing us, and shortly after dawn, continued northeast on I-80.
Before we continue, I pulled this winter photo of the Donner rest stop from Google. This mountain range is no joke. Take a look at the height of that snow!
The interstate took us out of the mountains and into the desert yet again, as we passed Reno, Nevada. We soon passed Lovelock, where nearby is a
cave with a legendary history that I’d like to see some day. Alas, it was a half hour out and back out of the way, and we needed to make good time today so it’ll go on the to-do list for a future visit.
Our co-pilots are often on the lookout.
A common theme on the trip are towns that install a giant letter of their name on a nearby hillside. This one is E for Elko.
Once in Idaho, We did take a quick detour to Shoshone Falls, which is called the Niagara Falls of the West. It lived up to the hype. Among flat farm fields and distant mountains is a lush deep gorge accessed through a narrow windy road.
Panorama attempt:
As is so often the case, photos don’t do justice to the sights out here.
We jumped back in the vehicles and continued the long trek, finally arriving at Sawtooth National Forest around 8 pm. (7 Pacific, but we’re now back in Mountain time so we lost an hour.) We’re up a long dirt road in a place called Taylor Canyon just north of Ketchum (if you can) Idaho.
This photo REALLY fails to do justice to the mountain behind us.
Personally, I think this is best site we’ve camped at so far, as far as views go.
We have no set destinations for this three day stop,
but will plan on checking out the local points of interest. Stay tuned.
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